26 April 2023 , 06:30
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Lose to Manchester City, and lose the Premier League title.
That is the reality facing Arsenal, as they prepare for a huge clash against Pep Guardiola's side at the Etihad Stadium.
The Gunners sit five points clear of City at the top of the table having played two games more. Considering City have won seven consecutive Premier League games, it's hard to imagine anyone stopping them if Arsenal can't.
If you ask most experts, they will tell you this is where Arsenal's title challenge will end. Yet football is never that simple. Mikel Arteta's team have impressed almost everyone this season and can take inspiration from one of their former players... Emmanuel Adebayor.
The ex-striker is not fondly remembered at the Emirates. Adebayor scored 62 goals for Arsenal between January 2006 and August 2009 as a key member of Arsene Wenger's side, yet he became a rival player when he joined City in a £25million deal.
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Adebayor then angered Arsenal fans further by scoring against them at the Etihad before running the entire length of the pitch to celebrate in front of them. To add insult to injury, the Togo international went on to join Arsenal's bitter rivals Tottenham.
Adebayor wasn't the only player to leave Arsenal for City during this period, with the likes of Gael Clichy, Samir Nasri and Kolo Toure also jumping ship.
Emmanuel Adebayor famously celebrated in front of the Arsenal fans (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)Who do you think will win Wednesday night's big game? Let us know in the comments below!
Looking back on Adebayor's infamous celebration, Toure can understand why his team-mate and friend did it. "In the game, I have to be honest, I was as passionate as Adebayor," he tells Mirror Football on behalf of BT Sport. "When you play against your old club, you really want to show them how much they miss you."
That sentiment will also be apparent on Wednesday night, with several former City colleagues returning to the Etihad as Arsenal employees. Arteta was Guardiola's assistant before taking the manager's job at the Emirates in December 2019, while Oleksandr Zinchenko and Gabriel Jesus were signed from City last summer.
Toure believes Zinchenko and Jesus will be desperate to show Guardiola what he's missing. Jesus, in particular, has a point to prove after he was replaced by Erling Haaland. The Norwegian has gone on to score an incredible 48 goals for City this season.
Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko left Manchester City for Arsenal last summer (Getty Images)Toure notes: "Those two players want to hurt City and show how big a mistake they made to let them leave. Jesus right now is looking at Haaland and thinking, 'They took this guy [from Borussia Dortmund] to play in my position. He's fantastic, but I will show them I was really good as well and they made a mistake'.
"Zinchenko the same. [He'll think], 'OK, you didn’t rate me highly, you thought I was a squad player. I want to show you I have quality and I'm better than the players you have there'.
"And they’re going to give every single thing. You can already see right from the start of the season Zinchenko is the one who always brings the team together because he wants to hurt Man City."
Kolo Toure was speaking on behalf of BT Sport (BT Sport)Jesus has been praised for giving Arsenal's attack a new dimension, although he was dearly missed when he suffered a knee injury at the World Cup in Qatar to rule him out for three months. Zinchenko has also been applauded for his leadership skills at left-back.
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Arsenal will benefit from Jesus and Zinchenko at the Etihad. The third trick up their sleeve comes in the form of Arteta, who will know all of Guardiola's strengths and weaknesses.
As Toure claims: "Arteta is the best guy who can find any trick to get Pep because he's been with Pep; he's been working with Pep. They were really, really close - he must know a lot of things! It's up to him to use them, maybe.
"Definitely, he's the one [manager] who will have something to get into Pep's skin... everyone has something that can get into their skin."
But the big question is will Jesus run the length of the pitch to celebrate in front of the City fans if he scores? Toure laughs: "I don't think he will do that. There's only one Adebayor!"
It's Game On for the title. Watch Man City v Arsenal, the biggest game of the season, exclusively live on BT Sport 1 on Wednesday 26th April from 7pm. BT Sport will broadcast all Premier League midweek fixtures from Tuesday 25th to Thursday 27th April. Watch 30 days of BT Sport, contract-free, for £29.99 a month with the BT Sport Monthly Pass. For more info, visit: bt.com/sport/monthly-pass